Spatial applications should be developed in the same way that users develop other database applications: by starting with a good data model and using as many of the database features as possible for managing the data. If a task can be done using a database feature like replication, then it should be done using the standard replication technology instead of inventing a new procedure for replicating spatial data. Because Oracle Spatial’s offerings are standards compliant, the book shows how Oracle spatial technology can be used to build cross-vendor database solutions.

“Applying and Extending Oracle Spatial” assumes a basic knowledge of Oracle in terms of understanding the SDO_GEOMETRY type, creating tables, indexes and views, executing basic to moderately complex queries and some idea of PL/SQL programming of triggers and stored procedures. The book shows you the clever things that can be done not just with Oracle Spatial on its own, but in combination with other database technologies. This is a great resource book that will convince you to purchase other Oracle technology books on non-spatial specialist technologies because you will finally see that “spatial is not special: it is a small, fun and clever part of a much larger whole”.

This book starts with a detailed data model that can be used in land management applications. It then shows different database features that can be used to manage the spatial data just like any other data in the database. It will also walk you through some of the basic concepts of Oracle Spatial that will help you manage the data better in the database. It will also show how PL/SQL and Java stored procedures programming can help you extend and apply spatial data processing to implement the many data management and processing tasks that are typically done via a GIS.

This book starts where all database technology books should start: the data model. It then moves on to show the different tools and technologies that can be applied against that data model/database to solve problems such as additional views, replication, triggers and other programming. Finally, the book concludes by showing how standards can be used to implement a data model and processing across more than one vendor’s database.

This book on applying and extending Oracle Spatial is aimed at broadening how practitioners conceive of and implement spatial data processing. The powerful insights “Applying and Extending Oracle Spatial” offers are not definitive, but they are offerings from two experts who present a powerful understanding on how Oracle Spatial and related technologies offer a platform for spatial data storage and processing that is seldom heard.